Предусилители — Hegel P30A

The P30A is an analogue stereo preamplifier from the Norwegian company Hegel, designed to drive separate power amplifiers. It was launched together with the H30A power amplifier to replace the P30 and H30, which had been on sale since 2011, after the transistors used in the older models were discontinued. The US list price was USD 8,995. The black chassis measures 9.6 cm high, 43 cm wide and 30 cm deep and weighs 7.2 kg.

Key specs that matter

Hegel fits two XLR balanced and three RCA sockets, plus a Home Theatre input that runs at fixed level so the preamplifier can sit inside a surround system. The outputs comprise one balanced XLR set plus two RCA sets, and both RCA outputs are active, with one configurable as a fixed volume output. Signal to noise ratio exceeds 130 dB in balanced mode. Distortion stays below 0.005%, intermodulation below 0.01% measured with 19 kHz and 20 kHz tones, and crosstalk below minus 100 dB. A 3.5 mm jack gives a 12 V trigger output so a connected power amplifier follows the preamp into and out of standby, and a second 3.5 mm jack accepts an IR direct signal from an external control system.

Engineering and use context

Hegel uses a fully balanced dual amplifier topology, so each channel has two separate amplifiers, two volume controls and two SoundEngine modules. Hegel keeps the signal path deliberately short - audio passes through only two transistors and an ultra-low noise volume attenuator, and the internal wiring runs are kept short to reduce interference. The gain stage is new and uses hand-matched FET transistors, which Hegel chose because they produce no higher-order harmonic distortion. For volume, four potentiometers run in parallel, and the position of the dial is digitised before the signal reaches the stepped analogue attenuator. The patented SoundEngine circuit monitors the signal and corrects intermodulation distortion in real time using a feed forward design. The supplied remote control handles volume, source selection and mute.

Pairing

The balanced XLR output is intended for balanced power amplifiers, for example the matching H30A, while the second RCA output suits an active subwoofer or a further amplifier for bi-amping. The fixed level Home Theatre input lets an AV receiver share the same power amplifier and speakers for film playback without a second volume control in the chain.

Alternatives

The Hegel P20 is the other preamplifier in the current Hegel catalogue and sits below this model in the range.